This time of year is usually reserved for excitement as the countdown to October and the opening of the Glenorchy War Memorial pool nears.
Instead, this year, locals have been locked out of their local 60-year-old pool after it was closed due to safety concerns stemming from dozens of structural problems.
A group of around a dozen residents descended on the pool on Monday to protest the closure and ‘save the pool for their children and their children’s children’.
The group say the Glenorchy City Council is ‘not listening’ to them and plan to continue protesting until a favourable outcome is reached.
“The whole process from the point of view of council hasn’t been transparent, there’s been no communication with the public and the have a duty of care,” Mala Crew said.
Amputee Tim Marks said “we’ve got a future generation of kids coming up and we’ve got people with disabilities that need this pool that can’t access the (Hobart) Aquatic Centre because it’s too far away for them to go.”
With a hefty price tag of approximately $30 million to $40 million for a complete overhaul, the pool was thrown a $200,000 lifeline from the State Government earlier this month to investigate a potential ‘pool recreation precinct’.
The funds will go towards hiring a specialist to assess community needs, costs and future options for the pool site.
